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By Essie Esterhuizen, Michael M. Murphy, Chris Mark

"The response of the surrounding rock mass to the creation of mining excavations determines the ultimate load on a pillar support system. In conditions where the ground is relatively soft and weak, the full overburden weight can be transferred to the pillar system. However, in stiffer and stronger rocks, a greater portion of the overburden load is transferred to the unmined coal barriers or abutments, and the pillar stress is reduced. This paper makes use of numerical models to examine the interaction between typical pillar systems and the surrounding rock mass for weak and strong geological conditions at various spans and depths of cover. The concepts of structural failure and functional failure of pillars are used to assess pillar performance when pillars are deformed beyond their peak resistance. The results show that the span-to-depth ratio is an important factor in determining the pillar stress and the ultimate deformation of pillars. The ultimate pillar strain appears to be closely related to the functional success of pillar systems.INTRODUCTIONThe National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) was requested by Congress to study the safety of retreat pillar mining following the Crandall Canyon Mine disaster that took place near Price, Utah in August, 2007. As a part of this study, an investigation was made to better understand how the rock mass responds to the creation of mining excavations and how the loads are distributed among the pillars and the surrounding abutments or barriers. The outcome of these investigations contributed to the development of a modified loading model for the ARMPS-2010 (Mark, 2010) method ofretreat mining pillar design.Structural and Functional Failure of PillarsPillar design is typically conducted by estimating the pillar strength and stress, and then sizing the pillars so that an adequate margin of safety exists between the expected strength and stress. The pillar strength can be defined as the maximum resistance of a pillar to axial compression (Brady and Brown, 1985). If a pillar is loaded beyond its peak strength, load shedding or yielding can occur, and the pillar is considered to have failed as a structure. Structural failure generally refers to a loss of loadcarrying capacity."

Jan 1, 2010

By D. Saramak, T. Gawenda, Z. Naziemiec, A. Saramak

"Crushing and grinding operations are burdensome to the environment due to generating large amounts of dust, noise and waste during course of comminution operations. An indirect negative contribution of industrial crushing processes is an increase of carbon dioxide emissions, which is a byproduct in energy production processes. On the other hand comminution processes in ore enrichment technology are essential due to liberation the useful minerals from the gangue, and producing the demanded particle size fractions of products. The article concerns investigation over negative influence of comminution devices on environment in terms of dust and noise emissions. Several various crushing devices were under investigations, both in laboratory and in industrial scale.The obtained results were analyzed in terms throughput and energy consumption achieved in various crushing devices. The test results allow to conclude that an intensity of dust generation for individual types of crushing devices is varied. An additional aim of this article is to link the aspect of mineral processing with its environmental impact and hence an influence of raw materials beneficiation industry on the quality of life of residents in immediate and close vicinity.INTRODUCTIONMineral raw materials beneficiation processes are an integral part of multi-stage processing of coal, iron ore and non-ferrous metals, production of aggregates, cement, or precious metals and stones. One of the common features of all beneficiation operations is their high energy consumption, which is mainly connected with various operations of feed particle size reduction. Comminution processes in ore enrichment technology are essential to expose and liberate the useful minerals from the gangue, while in aggregate production processes – to obtain the demanded particle size fractions of products. Crushing operations are characterized by a high degree of negative impact to the environment and humans, mainly due to:• High electricity consumption, which indirectly contributes to the increased emissions of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, since CO2 is often one of the byproducts of energy production;• Relatively rapid wear of device working parts, what forces a production of spare parts and involvement of steel industry;• Intense dust pollution generated during crushing and grinding processes. This is one of the factors affecting the air quality and the consequent deterioration of the living conditions of inhabitants near mines and processing plants; and • Excessive noise emissions."

Jan 1, 2016

By Wayne Rogers, Sarma Kanchibotla, Alan Tordoir, Bryon Bisiauz, Seth Ako, Eric Engmann

Blast induced rock mass displacement can have a significant impact on ore loss & dilution. The mischaracterization of the grade boundaries both prior to, as well as a result of blasting can lead to significant financial losses on account of ore loss and dilution. Ore dilution occurs when waste material is miscategorised as ore and sent for processing diluting the run of mine head grade and recovery. Ore loss takes place when valuable mineral is miscategorised as waste and sent to the waste dumps, thus never being processed and recovered.

Jan 1, 2012

By Daryl Andershock, Paul Worsey, Brandon Weeks, Kurt Kosman

Several derivatives of soybean oil are currently manufactured and sold on the open market. Of these, the use of methylsoyate as a direct fuel substitute in diesel engines has been thoroughly researched and practically applied. The use of this product as a fuel gave rise to the idea of using a similar substitution in ANFO blasting agent. The first year of a three-year research program has been sponsored by the Missouri Soybean Merchandising Council. The project is funded for the purpose of opening up of new markets for Missouri soybean products.

Jan 1, 1997

By Jasper L. Stuckey

It is not known when kaolin mining was first begun in North carolina, Evidence, in the form of excavations and primitive tools, indicates that some of the deposits were worked in prehistoric times. It has been suggested that the prehistoric mining was for mica, but the workings were all in altered or partly altered pegmatite material and the dumps do not represent the amount of material removed. some of the early openings may have been made in search of kaolin or semi-kaolinized feldspar which was sold to English1 traders along the coast and used in some Of the early English porcelains. In 1744,2 an application was made for an English patent to produce porcelain from an earthy mixture obtained from the Cherokee Nation in North America. It is well established, however, that the occurrence of kaolin in western North Carolina was known in England by 1767. In that year, Josiah Wedgewood sent T. Griffiths3,4 to what is now Macon County, North Carolina, to secure a supply Of kaolin for use in England. Griffiths diary, now in Etruria Museum, Stokes-on-Trent, contains a most interesting account of his experience. Kaolin was discovered at St. Austell, England, shortly after the voyage Of Griffiths, which probably accounts for the lack of further interest in American kaolin. Between 1767 and 1888, there are no records of kaolin mining in North Carolina. In the latter year, however, mining was begun near Webster, Jackson County, and, in the intervening period, has become an important industry. 'Or some 20 years, kaolin mining was carried On chiefly in Jackson, Macon, and Swain Counties. About 1904, it was begun in the Spruce Pine district and for the past 20 Yea's most of the kaolin mined in the State has come from Avery, Mitchell, and Yancey Counties. Distribution The kaolins of North Carolina are limited in occurrence to the Piedmont Plateau and Appalachian Mountain area of the State. While kaolins are widespread in the Piedmont Plateau, having been prospected for in Rutherford, Cleveland, Gaston, Granville, Lincoln, Catawba, Ire-dell, Richmond, Moore, Randolph, and Montgomery Counties, the production from that area has never been important. The known deposits of commercial importance are limited entirely to the mountain area of the State. While kaolins occur widely distributed throughout the mountain area and have been prospected for in many counties of that area, commercial production has come chiefly from two districts. One of these includes Jackson, Macon, Swain, and Haywood Counties. The other includes Avery, Mitchell, and Yancey Counties. Geology With few exceptions, all the known kaolin deposits in North Carolina contain

Jan 1, 1948

By Robert Stefanko

Longwall mining which has a long history abroad, was used only on a limited scale in the United States until less than 20 years ago. Modern longwall mining in this country can be said to have begun in 1960 with the first installation of self-advancing props in a coal mine in southern West Virginia. In Europe, because of adverse natural conditions, longwall mining is frequently the only practical method, but, in the United States, the system has had to compete economically with highly productive room-and-pillar systems. However, because it is inherently continuous, it has greater productive potential than room-and-pillar systems, and, therefore, although only about 5% of the total U.S. underground production today is the result of the longwall system, its growth potential is great. As mining, by necessity, progresses deeper and must be done under poorer natural conditions, less opportunity will exist for the room- and-pillar system, and the longwall system will have to be used.

Jan 1, 1981

By J. D. Corbett

Mining geophysics in 1967 continued to expand with greater application in the exploration and development of mineral deposits. Moreover, geophysical activity increased without the particular emphasis of a Pine Point or Timmins discovery to spur interest. This trend is expected to continue through 1968 as geophysics more and more becomes an integral part of a mineral exploration program. This past year saw the "little black box" of the old-fashioned "doodlebugger" pushed further into the background, replaced by increasingly sensitive equipment of sophisticated design. The trend also is away from the one man geophysical operation wherein the same individual is responsible for the development, design and operation of the field gear, the planning and execution of a survey and analyzing and interpreting the data. In today's technology a staff of specialists, electronics engineers, mathematicians, physicists-to name but a few- are required to back up the exploration geophysicist in the development of new methods and techniques, in the reduction of the voluminous amount of field data and in the interpretation of the anomalies which can be enhanced by various high-speed computer techniques. Obviously a full back-up staff of these varied abilities is impractical to most exploration companies. However, the equivalent function is provided to the lone staff geophysicist by the many competent geophysical contractors and individual consultants.

Jan 2, 1968

By C. H. Hopper

THE gold orebodies of the Matachewan Consolidated mine are of particular interest geologically because of their odd shapes, their apparent lack of connection one with another, and the fact that they occur in a number of different formations. All of the orebodies exhibit a similar fracture pattern and the areas of fracturing appear related to the local folding. However, the lack of either horizontal or vertical continuity suggests additional controls not yet discovered. The question of origin, so ably discussed by H. C. Cooke in 1919, will be reviewed in the light of the additional evidence uncovered since his examination of surface trenches twenty-four years ago. The Matachewan Consolidated mine, with its neighbour, the Young-Davidson mine, is in Powell township, 25 miles by road northwest from Elk Lake, 30 miles west of Kirkland Lake, and 45 miles southeast of Porcupine. It may be considered as being on the westerly extension of the Kirk-land Lake sedimentary belt, where the rock column is markedly similar. There is no similarity in structure, however, for great ore-bearing shears and faults simply do not occur at Matachewan. Rather may it be said that the region, under stress, failed in isolated brecciated patches, some of which make up today's orebodies. The mine currently treats 1,000 tons a day of porphyry ore averaging 0.10 oz. gold per ton. It started operations in 1934 on greenstone ore, and the mill then treated 150 tons a day of ore averaging 0.23 oz. gold per ton. Total production to the end of 1941 has been 929,484 .tons averaging 0.160 oz. gold per ton.

Jan 1, 1942

ALEXANDER BRYDEN Alexander Bryden, clean of engineers in the anthracite mining field, and a member of the pioneer Pittston family, was claimed by death Wednesday, September 26, 1917. The announcement was not a surprise, as he had been in a critical condition for several days. Mr. Bryden had been in failing health for a year past, but his indomitable will kept him at his accustomed duties until quite recently. Two weeks before his death he attended the regular weekly meeting of the Board of Directors of the Miners' Savings Bank in Pittston, Pa. At that time he apparently felt that his end was fast approaching, as he bade farewell to his associates on the bank board. Until a few days before the end, he continued to give attention to business matters at his home, in preparation for the end, which he met unflinchingly. In the passing of Mr. Bryden, northeastern Pennsylvania loses one of the best-known mining engineers, and the community, a man who, throughout his long life, was actively interested in its social welfare and business prosperity. He was for many years prominent in the management of the mining operations of the Pennsylvania Coal Co., and at the time of his death held the position of consulting engineer of the Pennsylvania and Hillside Coal. Companies.

Jan 12, 1917

By M. Kalin

Tailings deposits are frequently the source of ground water contamination due to the transport of contaminated tailings pore-water. If amendments to tailings covers could be made to facilitate a precipitation reaction and halt or reduce the generation of acid in pyritic tailings, the quality of pore-water quality would be improved which would in turn reduce the production of contaminants. The effects of phosphate wastes, added to base-metal mine tailings in Newfoundland, Canada, were tested. Laboratory and field experiments determined the effects of different mixing ratios of phosphate wastes to tailings volume (1:4, 1:8, 1:12 and 1:20, dry weight) for a total period of 3.2 years. The addition of phosphate at ratios of 1:4 to 1:12 substantially increased the pore water pH, and reduced both acidity and Zn concentrations. These results suggest that addition of phosphate wastes to tailings covers can reduce acidity generation and improve tailings pore-water quality.

Jan 1, 2004

RAYMOND M. Howe (author's reply to discussion*).-Dr. Unger states that magnesite will hardly supersede dolomite in fettling after a heat; that it is hard to believe a slag composed of oxide of iron containing about 6 per cent. of phosphorus is the active corroding, agent in a boil in a furnace; and that boiling cannot be said to be the result of the chemical action of a high-phosphorus slag on a basic bottom. These are well-established facts that no one would venture to question. The authors were misinterpreted in the statement that "in the summary, it is claimed that magnesite low in lime, or of greatest purity, ranks first in resistance to slaking," etc. On the contrary, the position has been taken throughout that while a low lime content is advantageous, the presence of several per cent. of iron oxide (an impurity), is necessary in order to confer the proper bonding and sintering properties in dead-burned grain magnesite to be used for furnace hearths. We cannot subscribe to the view that pure magnesia is no better fitted for a refractory than pure lime,' nor that the pure natural varieties of magnesite; such as Grecian or Washington, must necessarily be burned with silica and oxide of iron to produce a satisfactory material. On a small scale, pure magnesia has been satisfactorily used as a refractory in the form of crucibles. In the production of dead-burned grain magnesite from the Grecian or Washington mineral, iron oxide is added but the addition of silica is neither customary nor desirable. It is possible to manufacture brick of good quality from both the Grecian and the Washington material without adding either silica or iron oxide, providing they are burned at a sufficiently high temperature. This is regularly done on a commercial scale both in America and abroad when brick of. exceptionally high refractoriness or special purity are desired. The following analysis is of an English brick of Grecian magnesite which is extremely low in all impurities.1

Jan 6, 1919

By R. W. Utley

Over one half billion tons of coal per year is scalped, classified, deslimed, drained and rinsed, dewatered and final sized on rotary, vibrating, shaking or stationary screens. The vibrating screen is the industry work horse and performs the bulk of the screening functions in the coal preparation plant. There are two major types of brute force mechanical vibrating screens used in coal preparation plants: (1) the two-bearing one-shaft inclined screen and (2) the four-bearing two-shaft horizontal screen. Both of these types are familiar to coal producers.

Jan 1, 1966

By V Malysiak, N J. Shackleton

In the flotation of platinum group minerals pyroxene is a major gangue mineral. This study shows using zeta potential and ToF-SIMS analyses that when pyroxene is exposed to copper, nickel and/or calcium ions in solution at alkaline pHs a surface reaction occurs between the hydroxy species, in the case of copper and nickel, or divalent calcium ions and the pyroxene surface which influences the floatability of the pyroxene. Following exposure to copper and nickel ions at pH 9 addition of SIBX resulted in the pyroxene floating readily. It is also shown, in the case of copper, that the activating effect of the adsorbed copper hydroxy species can be reduced by the addition of complexing amines prior to SIBX. Proposals are made to explain these observations.

Jan 1, 2005

By Gernot Kostorz

In a recent paper, Raffo and itcheell1 compared solid solution hardening of various bcc alloy single crystals at room temperature and concluded that the expression for localized elastic interaction between dislocations and solute atoms2 that gives the critical resolved shear stress (CRSS) 7,: to = Z . µE3/2 C1/2 where c = concentration, e = misfit parameter, (µ = shear modulus, Z = numerical constant Fig. 1—The slope dT0/dc1/2 for niobium alloy single crystals deformed at 570°K plotted against the misfit parameter € = In' I + 1616 I. from Ref. 6, •estimated from Ref. 7. Table I. Plateau Hardening and Alloy Parameters for Niobium Alloys dT0/dc1/2, kg/mm2 Solute Ref. 6 Tantalum 3.7 ± 0.3 1.9 0.73 + 0.06 9 0.0 ± 0.5 15 Vanadium 16.1 ±1.4 - 0.69 i 0.01 9 -7.4 ± 0.5 16 Tungsten 12.5 ? 1.5 20.9 0.92 i 0.05 10 -5.0 t 0.4 17 Rhenium - 25.9 1.24 11.12 -8.5 ± 0.4 I5 Molybdenum - 14.6 1.04 13,14 -4.6 s†±?˜µ?fF?? 0.5 17 Hafnium - 13.9 0.37 12 4.8 ± 0.5 17 Table 11. Solid Solution Hardening and Alloy Parameters for Tantalum Alloys i)' dTo/dc1/2 kg/mm2, dTp/dc1/2 kg/mm2, Ref. 22 1006 Solute ˜570°K Ref. 7 See Text Ref. 25 Rhenium 44.3 32.5 0.65 -8.5 Tungsten 32.1 24.3 0.34 -4.6 Molybdenum 29.3 19.1 -0.19 -5.9 Niobium 5.8 5.5 -0.43 0.I

Jan 1, 1970

By Jesús E. Gómez

This work is a continuation of a paper presented in the 32nd DFI Annual Conference, Colorado 2007, titled ?Hollow Core Bar Micropiles - Design parameters interpreted from 260 load tests.? The first paper presented the results of the verification and proof tests performed for the retrofit of two bridges with hollow core bars that used 260 micropiles. It included an interpretation of the unit bond values in the different soils where micropiles were installed. Recently two additional bridges within the same geological environment were also retrofitted using 144 hollow core micropiles. This paper includes the interpretation of the additional data from the proof tests performed and refines recommended values for design of hollow core bar micropiles in soils similar to those encountered in these two projects. The authors believe that the data collected will significantly add to the relatively small existing database on micropile tests and may also be useful during implementation of the LRFD design methodology.

Jan 1, 2008

By Raymond Derzay

This publication is intended to be of value to the mineral industry in establishing and maintaining effective programs for preventing noise-induced hearing loss. Factors involved in this loss and the need for and the requirements of an effective hearing conservation program are discussed. The legal and legislative history of compensation for hearing loss is briefly reviewed. A review of statutes is not attempted since several States have recently modified) or are in the process of modifying their laws regarding permissible noise exposures) required hearing protection) and/or compensation for hearing loss. A review of other aspects of the problem of industrial noise in terms of medical, physiological) and psychological frames of reference is included. A hearing conservation program is described in detail. Appendixes detailing the names and addresses of a few equipment suppliers are included. References are provided for those who may wish to delve more deeply into the medical, technical, and scientific considerations of noise and its effect on man.

Jan 1, 1972

By A. M. Hanna

This paper presents the experimental investigation on the ultimate skin friction of batter piles. The model piles were pushed in medium dense sand deposits at different inclinations up to 30 with respect to the vertical and tested under axial compression loads. The decrease in the total skin resistance with increasing pile inclination can be explained in terms of the reduction of the ave­rage mobilized angle of friction between the pile shaft and sand. The analysis, which takes into account asymmetrical earth pressure distributions around the pile shaft, showed good agreement with experimental results.

Jan 1, 2010

By E. B. Burwell, R. H. Nesbitt

Designed by army engineers, the NX borehole camera provides the most economical method of subsurface exploration so far devised. Continuous cylindrical color photographs now reveal minor flaws in foundation bedrock not always disclosed by borehole samples. A unique projector transforms the photographs into true-to-scale images of three dimensions. ANEW milestone in the progress of photography and subsurface exploration was reached when the Chief of Army Engineers announced the development of the NX borehole camera. In obtaining continuous undistorted cylindrical color pictures of dry or water-filled borings the device surpasses all other cameras designed for photographing interior surfaces of pipes, wells, and conduits. The usefulness of the camera and the unique projector that comes with it are at once apparent. To the geological, mining, and civil engineer alike it signifies the end of guesswork with respect to underground conditions that have eluded identification by conventional core-drilling methods. To the medical profession it may well signal new progress in photo optics which could result in cylindrical color photographs supplementing the X-ray and existing photographic methods used in exploratory surgery. The pilot model of the camera has more than paid for itself as a result of its success in bringing to the surface at two dams information previously obtainable only by costly drilling of mansized boreholes for subsurface on-the-spot examination. Such bores cost as much as $200 per lineal foot as against $10 per ft for the conventional 3-in. or NX exploratory core borings from which the present invention derives its name. The NX camera can now photograph completely the interior surface of these borings. Research and development for the first camera and projection equipment were conducted by Engineering Research Associates, Division of Remington Rand, Inc., under the technical supervision of the Geology and Geophysics Branch, Office of the Chief of Army Engineers in Washington, in accordance with plans and specifications furnished by this branch. Subsequent modifications of the camera-lowering device, transporting equipment, and special field tools were made in the Corps of Engineers' Ohio River Division Laboratories in Cincinnati. The background of this development is interesting. Among the more difficult foundation problems involved in construction of concrete dams are those resulting from bedrock imperfections that escape disclosure by conventional exploration methods. Often these imperfections are of sufficient magnitude to introduce costly changes, especially when their presence is discovered only after foundation excavation is well in progress. Bedrock flaws most frequently camouflaged may be ruptures resulting from the enormous stresses to which rocks have been subjected, or they may be planes or zones of weakness related to chemical alteration and underground erosion. Obviously, detailed information on their location, dimensions, and structure is important, as these factors can affect the stability of a dam and the security of life and property downstream. Their discovery and appraisal entail extensive subsurface exploration. At present the most economical exploratory tool available to geologists and engineers is the small-diameter diamond core drill by means of which cores of the foundation bedrock are recovered for examination and testing. All too often, however, these samples fail to disclose minor foundation flaws that may be of major importance before a structure is completed. As a result, the small-diameter drillings are supplemented generally by more reliable but much more costly shafts, tunnels, or large-diameter calyx drill holes that permit the investigator to examine the foundation rocks in place. It was to reduce the number and cost of these expensive and time-consuming investigations, as well as to obtain more complete information on rock structure from the smaller borings, that the NX borehole camera was developed. That it has been eminently satisfactory in accomplishing that purpose is demonstrated by its success most recently at the Folsom dam, under construction on the American River, 23

Jan 1, 1955

By Richard R. Klimpel

This article introduces the basic definitions and philosophy behind process hazard evaluation procedures and the determination of risk as being a function of accident probabi1ity and accident consequence. The general concepts of good engineering practice and predictive hazard evaluation are discussed. The most commonly employed methods used in the processing industries are reviewed with an eye towards briefly presenting what each method offers as far as information, time and resources required, etc. Some initial references on the actual practical use of each technique in the processing industries are also given.

Jan 1, 1991

By Sri C. Sawmliana, P. Pall Roy

Damage to underground roof and pillars in blasting gallery (BG) panels has been an increasingly important area of study in recent years due to the invention of new explosives and cord systems which has led to the modification and alteration of the design aspects developed by Charbonnage de France (CdF). According to extensive mine experiments conducted by Indian and foreign experts, it has been established that the induced peak particle velocity (PPV) is predominantly related to the emanated seismic energy of a source and the distance from the source. With that concept in mind, nearly 160 experimental blasts were carried out in four BG panels in India under varying geomining conditions. Based on the results obtained thus far, the authors have established predictor equations correlating explosive energy (in Joules) and distance from the shot to that of induced peak particle velocity received at the sensor point. Good correlation was obtained between the actual and the predicted values. It is realized that this equation may be used as an efficient tool to determine the size limit of blasts in BG panels so that the induced particle velocity does not create damage in underground workings as per the established Blast Damage Index (BDI) and other available safety norms.

Jan 1, 2004